Associated Press

Colombo, June 2:

A Sri Lankan army general and Tamil Tiger rebel commanders held “fruitful” talks today aimed at ending a spate of killings that threaten the shaky truce between the two sides, a spokeswoman for the European ceasefire monitoring group said. The meeting came a day after the Tamil insurgents warned of “calamity and destruction” unless the killings stop. Over 15 people have been killed in recent weeks in eastern Sri Lanka. Army major general Shantha Kottegoda and guerrilla leaders met in Batticaloa, 220 kilometres east of Colombo, said Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission spokeswoman Disa Finnboga. They plan to meet again on June 16. “Today’s meeting was fruitful and cooperative,” Finnboga said.